Even if Wu Zhangkong had suppressed his cultivation to their level, he didn’t have a single opening or weakness. Yet, in this single battle, he made a stunning choice.

Icy mist exuded from him as sword waves burst forth and quickly weaved together to form a net, forming a protective barrier.

And at that moment, a golden six-pointed star appeared beneath Wu Zhangkong’s feet while shackles of ice shot out of it and latched onto his body.

A metallic screech resounded. Tang Wulin’s Golden Dragon Claw had seized the sword wave net and crushed it! With the improvements in his cultivation and the aid of the Mysterious Heaven Method, Tang Wulin could maintain his Golden Dragon Claw for a full twenty seconds.

But the results were far from his expectations!

Though the Starwheel Shackles had activated at just the right moment, but Wu Zhangkong’s stalwart defense exceeded their calculations! It had deflected the shackles within the split-second, and while Tang Wulin had been able to crush the net, he had received backlash as well.

he might of the sword wave sent a tremble down his spine and forced him to step back.

This single step back had broken his offensive stance. Wu Zhangkong’s eyes lit up and the ice shackles on his body splintered before falling to the ground. Despite the fact that he had suppressed his cultivation to two rings, his two rings and theirs were as different as the heavens and the earth due to his application of compressed soul power. The Starwheel Shackles could only last two seconds before his overwhelming strength.

The Frost Scars had fended off Tang Wulin for two seconds and now that he was freed, Wu Zhangkong pointed his sword at him..

But at that instant, Wu Zhangkong saw Tang Wulin smile. He instantly had a bad premonition and unleashed another Frost Scar net without hesitation.

However, he was too late.

A palm gently landed on his back and an explosive tempest of fire and ice bombarded him!

A layer of protective frost instantly coated his body, but it was not enough to prevent him from staggering forward from the blast. He released his full might, sending the four children flying.

His icy expression cracked, revealing an unsightly face!

“Woohoo!” Xu Xiaoyan was the first to celebrate!

That was right! They won!

In the last minute, Wu Zhangkong had clearly revealed a strength far beyond two rings in order to protect himself.

He withdrew his Skyfrost Sword. Considering his status, it was impossible for him to admit his defeat so instead he asked indifferently, “Whose plan was this?”

Tang Wulin snickered. “Teacher, it’s mine.”

Wu Zhangkong nodded. “Very good. We’ll continue again tomorrow. And this time, I’ll use three rings. Of course, this also means I’ll be using my three corresponding soul skills.” He turned around and left after dropping this bomb, his white robe fluttering in the wind and his aura as glacial as ever.

The excited four children froze with shock and disbelief written all over their faces.

Three rings? Three rings is vastly different from two rings! It’s the same as comparing the Hundred Refinements to the Thousand Refinements!

They had thought that their victory would spare them tomorrow’s training or cause Wu Zhangkong to alter their training program. What they had not predicted was that not only would their dreams be crushed, they had summoned forth a nightmare instead…

“Boss, this wasn’t part of the plan!” Xie Xie was on the verge of tears.

In their strategy, Xie Xie was cannon fodder used to distract Wu Zhangkong. In fact, they had even told him directly that he would be cannon fodder.

Wu Zhangkong definitely wouldn’t have believed that Xie Xie was their main assault force. However, the Twin Dragon Storm possessed a terrifying power against those of the same rank, forcing Wu Zhangkong to divert a part of his attention to dealing with him.

Tang Wulin had taken many things into consideration when he drafted up their battle plan. He had known that Wu Zhangkong would be skeptical if they suddenly challenged him during the night. With Wu Zhangkong’s thorough understanding of the three’s strengths, his suspicions would naturally fall onto Xu Xiaoyan.

The ingenuity of Tang Wulin’s plan lay in misleading Wu Zhangkong. With Wu Zhangkong’s character, he would naturally assume that the entire team was set up so that Tang Wulin’s Golden Dragon Claw would make the final strike..

The truth was, they really had set up their formation like that.

From Tang Wulin’s very first attack to Xie Xie’s descent from the sky and Gu Yue’s coordinated assault, everything had been building up to that one claw.

But their plans had been exposed too quickly. Tang Wulin’s claw was uncovered, and his Bluesilver Grass was repelled by Frost Scars. Even so, the grass had done its job. All it had to do was conceal the actions of Xu Xiaoyan and Gu Yue at the rear!

Gu Yue had begun preparing her fire and ice explosion barrage the moment she unleashed her first wave of elemental attacks. Her preparations had only been able to finish without interruption thanks to the masking effect of the thousand-year Bind.

In the final moment of the battle, Wu Zhangkong had relaxed after freeing himself from the starwheel’s restraints even though Tang Wulin had broken through his defence. Everything had gone according to his predictions of the children’s plans and sure enough, they had figured a way to disturb him. He had assumed that they had exhausted all of their means.

And the minute he relaxed his guard, Tang Wulin’s dragon claw would shoot out!

It would have been the decisive strike!

As Wu Zhangkong thought that, the explosion of fire and ice blasted him in the back.

Not only had he suppressed his soul power down to their rank, he had also restrained his spiritual power, diminishing his awareness substantially. This was the reason why he hadn’t noticed the true plan devised by these children. If he hadn’t released his full strength at that last moment, there was no doubt that he would have suffered some injuries.

The children’s plan had been perfect. Not only had they coordinated their abilities impressively, they had even exploited the fundamental character flaw of their opponent. After realizing how detailed their plan had been, Wu Zhangkong needed to know who had devised it. The fact that such a brilliant plan had been hatched by a ten-year-old child meant the child possessed indescribable potential.

Unseen by the children, a smile tugged at his lips as he left.

As a teacher, how could he be dissatisfied with such amazing students? Xu Xiaoyan’s Starwheel Shackles had also left a deep impression on him. It had completely sealed his soul power for an instant—a truly terrifying ability.

It seems they’ll be giving the academy and I a nice surprise at the Skysea Alliance Tournament.

☀

The children sullenly returned to their dormitory and into their beds, dreading the next day. The Starwheel Shackles couldn’t possibly have much effect on a three-ringed Wu Zhangkong. What were they to do? All they could do now was play by the ear.

Their intense lives of studying and cultivating resumed once more.

Xu Xiaoyan quickly found her place in the team. Not only was she was clever and working well with the team, she was also bright and adorable, the exact opposite of Gu Yue. Due to her pitiful strength during the day, she always worked hard to improve herself. What left Tang Wulin helpless, however, was how talented she was. Her soul power had increased to rank 18 in just one month, while he still struggled to reach rank 17. Even with the Mysterious Heaven Method, his cultivation speed was extremely slow.

Wu Zhangkong said, “The three-man team event in the juvenile division. The Skysea Alliance Tournament is very large and will have countless events. Obviously there will be events for soul masters, but they’re divided into individual and team competitions. Team competitions are either groups of three, five, or seven. You should pay close attention to the seven-man matches. You, Xie Xie, and Gu Yue will form a group and participate in the three-man team competition with Xu Xiaoyan as a substitute. As the team captain, you need to think about how you will obtain good results in the team competition, as well as the blacksmith’s competition. Your goal is to become the champions.”